Curb their enthusiasm

As the owner of springer spaniels that have never lost their love of picking-up, David Tomlinson is keen to see why some become bore

- David Tomlinson

THERE’S ONE THING

I’ve learned about springer spaniels in nearly 40 years of owning and working the breed: there’s no dog that loves to hunt more than a springer. And as anyone who has owned or shot over one will confirm, they are born optimists, happy to work a piece of cover even if the likelihood of finding a game is close to zero.

I also have a theory that when a springer’s nose is working and its tail is wagging, there’s a valve that shuts off the ears from any extraneous noise, such as a recall whistle. This theory is, of course, disapproved by field trial spaniels, but perhaps there’s something in their breeding that allows ears and nose to work at once. My spaniels have never managed to do both.

For most springers, retrieving is their second favorite thing to hunting. There are exceptions to this rule — I’ve come across springers with little or no interest in retrieving, but these dogs are unusual. Such enthusiasm for both hunting and retrieving long ago made the English springer spaniel Britain’s top rough shooting dog, a position it still holds today, though with considerable competition from the cocker.